Follow this step-by-step guide to encode and stream a video playlist using Microsoft Expression Encoder 4 and a Primcast Smooth Streaming Server.
Follow each step carefully to encode your video playlist and stream it using Microsoft Expression Encoder 4 with your Primcast Smooth Streaming Server.
Sign up for a Primcast account. Once activated, your Smooth Streaming Server details will be available in your dashboard. Install Microsoft Expression Encoder 4 on your computer.
Open the encoder, select the Transcoding Project option, and click Import in the lower-left corner to load the video file you want to broadcast. For smooth streaming, the video must be encoded at multiple bitrates.
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Select Encoding for Silverlight as the encoding type. Choose your target video bitrates — you can use a preset such as 720p CBR for high-quality output and click Apply to load the default bitrate configuration.
Use the + button next to an existing bitrate to add additional bitrates, or the trash bin icon to remove unwanted ones. You can also enter a custom bitrate value manually.
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Click the Encode button in the lower-left corner of the encoder window. Once encoding is complete, the output files will be saved to a directory on your computer (default path: ../My Documents/Expression/Expression Encoder/Output/).
Open an FTP client such as FileZilla and connect to your Primcast FTP server using your account hostname (username.primcast.com), username, and password. Upload all encoded files to the FTP server. Leave the FTP port field blank — it defaults to port 21.
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Once all files are uploaded, access your video by opening the direct URL to the .ism manifest file in a browser. The URL follows this format:
http://account.primcast.com/fileName.ism
Replace account with your Primcast account name and fileName with the name of your encoded file.
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Common questions about streaming from a video playlist using Microsoft Expression Encoder with Primcast.
